There's No Time Like War Time
by LEMONSKY4
Summary: Sequel to Catch a Falling Witch. Follow Bethany Cooper through what should be her seventh year. Loosely follows DH. Rated M for later chapters.
1. Chapter 1: Birthday Surprises

**Disclaimer: I'm not J.K. Rowling. I'm just having some fun.  
So here's the sequel to Catch a Falling Witch!

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**_"Every year on your birthday, you get a chance to start new."  
-Sammy Hagar

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_

Chapter One: Birthday Surprises

Bethany Cooper was currently hovering over the floor of her room (Percy's old room, actually) upside down. Just because she didn't want to wake up.

"RONALD BILLIUS WEASLEY! YOU PLACE BETH DOWN, THIS INSTANT!" Hermione yelled.

Ron instantly obliged to Hermione's request.

Once Beth had her feet back on the ground, she gave Hermione a grateful smile.

"Thanks, Mione," Beth said after picked herself up off the floor.

"Anytime, birthday girl," her best friend smiled back.

Her face lit up as she realized that it was her seventeenth birthday.

She smiled evilly and grabbed her wand. He seemed to have forgotten that she could use magic now.

She silently charmed Ron's hair pink when his back was turned. Revenge is sweet.

Humming a catchy tune, she quickly picked out some clothes to wear, and went into the bathroom to shower.

-x-

As soon as Beth walked into the kitchen, she was engulfed in a bone-crushing hug from Molly.

"Happy birthday, dearie," Molly said.

"Thanks, Mrs. Weasley," she said.

"Call me Molly," the Weasley matriarch insisted.

"Okay, Molly," she smiled.

Beth quickly sat down at the table and started to eat some breakfast.

Ginny soon came walking down the steps and sat down next to Beth.

"Please tell me you're the genius that charmed Ron's hair pink," Ginny whispered.

Beth smiled impishly, "The one and only."

The two girls smiled at each other.

"George is coming over to pick you up to take you to your apparition test," Molly said as she bustled around in the kitchen.

Suddenly, the fire roared green and George strode in.

"Speaking of the devil," Beth muttered. She always wondered how he always had impeccable timing.

"Happy Birthday Beth!" George said as he walked over and kissed her on the cheek.

"Are you ready to go?" he asked.

"Yeah, one minute," Beth said as she hurriedly finished eating her slice of toast. She quickly got up from her spot.

"Bye Ginny, I'll see you later."

"We'll be home before dinner, Mum," George said as he made his way towards the door.

"I want you two to stick together, no going anywhere alone. Please be careful," Molly said pleadingly to George.

"Don't worry, Mum, we'll be safe," George said reassuringly as he walked out the door.

The two of them walked out of the Burrow's boundaries to apparate.

"Hold on to me," George said.

Beth wrapped her arms around his waist and closed her eyes as she waited for them to apparate to the Ministry. She had grown a lot in two years, since she now reached the bottom of his chin.

With a pop, they were gone.

-x-

"Did you pass?" George asked as he saw Beth walking towards him.

"With flying colors," Beth said with a huge smile on her face.

"Excellent," he said as he gave her a hug.

"Where to next?" she asked.

"I was thinking that we could go to a tattoo parlor," George said as he wrapped his arm around her waist.

Beth stopped walking at looked at him with a shocked look on her face.

"You remembered?" she whispered.

"Well, yeah. I remembered it because I'm getting a tattoo as well," he said conversationally.

"I thought you weren't serious when you agreed to it. You were, uh, occupied with assaulting my neck," she said.

"Hey, what can I say? Your neck is absolutely fantastic," George said as he winked at her.

She blushed.

"Well, shall we?" she said.

"Yes, let's go."

-x-

"Bloody hell," Beth said as they exited the tattoo parlor.

"How long do you think it will take for the pain to go away?"

"I honestly don't know," George said as he touched the right side of lower back. He winced.

"What time is it?" Beth asked.

"Well, Mum said that dinner would be at six, and it's five- thirty. Wanna go home early?" he asked.

"Yeah. I'll see you there," with a pop, she disapperated to the Burrow.

-x-

Beth and George both put their acting skills to use since they masked their pain very easily.

"BETHANY!" Ron bellowed.

"Yeah?" she asked, instantly knowing it had to do with his pink hair.

"Why is my hair pink?" he asked, looking at her accusingly.

"I have no idea," she replied innocently.

He just sighed, defeated, and walked towards the sitting room.

Once he turned his back on her, she silently changed it back to normal.

She smiled, hoping he would never find out who changed his hair to pink.

"DINNER'S READY!" Molly called.

Beth smiled. Without a doubt, Molly had made all of her favorite food. Tonight was going to be a good night, she decided.

-x-

"Come on, Beth! Open your presents!" Tonks said to me.

"Okay, okay, keep your pants on!" I said while I was laughing. We were all outside sitting at a huge table, just finished eating my birthday cake.

After much anticipation, I was finally going to open all of my gifts.

I got more CD's from Hermione, a picture of George and me (taken by Colin in my fifth year) in a picture frame from Ginny, and various candies and books from others.

I came across an old velvet box with an envelope on top of it. The handwriting was so familiar to me, that I had I thought I would never see it again. I quickly opened the envelope and began to read.

_Dearest Bethany,_

_Happy 17th! I have been waiting for this day to come, and I can't believe my baby's all grown up! Okay, I'll cut the sappy stuff. You probably have no idea what is in that velvet box, and I'm not going to tell you what it is. All I'm going to say is that I'm continuing a tradition. I got this from Grandmum Cooper at my wedding, since it would have been awkward if your father had got it for his 17th birthday. Anyways, I know you have seen me wear this and I know you will love it. Just remember, that your father and I love you dearly and no matter what happens, everything will turn out fine._

_Love,_

_Mum_

I knew that I had started to cry, and I felt everyone's eyes on me. I set the letter on the table and gently picked up the velvet box.

I slowly opened it and gasped.

It was a diamond choker necklace. Row after row, small diamonds glittered in the light.

I couldn't believe it. My mum wore this on a very special occasion, and I'd always would be mesmerized by it. Even when she wasn't wearing it, I would sometimes sneak into my parent's room and go into her jewelry box and just stare at it.

I hesitantly touched it, trying to make sure that it was real.

And sweet Merlin, it was _real._

George came over to me and looked at what I was staring at, and he looked down at it in surprise.

"Where did this come from?" I asked, still dumbfounded that this piece of jewelry was mine.

"Arthur and I found it in your family vault at Gringotts when we went there," Remus said quietly.

I looked up at them and gave them a watery smile.

"Thanks," I said gratefully.

"There was also this," Arthur said as he took an envelope out of his pocket. As he handed it to me, I noticed that this was a lot more bulky.

I opened up the envelope and read its contents.

My jaw dropped. This can't be happening.

I looked up from the letter. "Is this true?" I asked.

"Yes," Arthur said.

"HOLY SHITE!" I yelled. I quickly got up from the table and started to pace back and forth still holding the letter tightly in my hands.

"I don't get it. Why wouldn't they have told me this before? I mean, it would have been nice if they have dropped hints or something. Not just give it to me. I didn't even know this existed!" I muttered.

I didn't even hear George call my name the first couple of times.

"BETHANY ELIZABETH COOPER!" George yelled.

I finally snapped out of it.

"WHAT?!" I yelled at him. He had my full attention now.

"What are you muttering about?!" he asked me.

"I inherited a HOUSE," I yelled.

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**A/N: So here's the first chapter of There's No Time Like War Time. Just to let you know, don't expect these chapters to be cranked out so fast as I did with this one. I've just got a lot of time to kill right now. Just to let you know, this takes place during DH. Feedback is greatly appreciated. **


	2. Chapter 2: Home Sweet Home

**Disclaimer: I'm not J.K. Rowling. I'm just having some fun.**

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_"Home is where the heart is."  
-Pliny the Elder

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_Chapter 2: Home Sweet Home

"What?!" George asked me.

"I'm a homeowner at the age of seventeen," I said mostly to myself.

Now I was smiling like an idiot.

"I've got my own house," I whispered. I quickly looked at Arthur.

"Can I go take a look at it now?" I asked him.

He looked like he was about to say no.

"George will come with me," I quickly added.

"I am?" he asked me.

"Yes, you are, whether you like it or not," I gave him a death glare that begged him to try to contradict me.

"Okay, you can go," Arthur said.

I gave him my biggest smile. "THANKS!" I quickly grabbed George's hand and dragged him out of the boundaries to apparate to my new house.

-x-

The first look I saw of my new house was seeing the wrap around porch. I started jumping up and down and started to clap my hands. I must have looked like an idiot.

"GEORGE! Look! It's got a wrap around porch! I've always wanted one of those!" I said to him. I quickly grabbed his hand and dragged him to the front door.

"So, your parents bought you a house without you knowing?" George asked me.

I shook my head. "In the letter, it said that my parents had a small fortune, most of it's from my dad's side. This was just one of their houses," I said slowly.

"_Just_ **one**?" George asked me.

"Yeah. There's the one that I lived in with my parents. And then there's one that's going to be given to David when he's seventeen. Don't tell him that though," I quickly interjected.

"If your parents had a small fortune, doesn't that mean you also inherit some of that money?" George asked me.

"Yeah, I do. I got half of it and David got the other," I said.

I took a deep breath. As I opened the door, I walked into an entrance hall. On the left side, there was a wall coat rack and on the right side there was a staircase.

I heard a huge crack, and then a house elf appeared. I jumped a little. I wasn't expecting that.

"Mistress Cooper! Welcome to your new home!" the house elf said to me. "I hasn't seen you since you was a baby."

"Um, hello. What's your name?" I asked.

"I is Annie," Annie bowed.

"I didn't know that you had a house elf!" George mumbled.

"Neither did I!" I replied, still somewhat in awe.

"And who is the man?" Annie asked me.

"Oh! This is George Weasley, my boyfriend," I grabbed hold of his hand and squeezed it. He looked down at me and smiled.

Annie gave the two of us a knowing smile. She then bowed to George.

"Weasley? That name sounds familiar. Ah, yes. Master Cooper has mentioned that name many times," Annie said.

"You knew my father?" I asked.

"Why of course! Master Cooper lived here with his wife until they moved. That was shortly after you were born," Annie said.

I quickly took in that information and nodded to myself.

"Annie, would it be okay if George and I looked around?" I asked.

"Yes of course! It is your house! Just call Annie if you need me," Annie said and with a crack she was gone.

"Let's go take a look at your new house!" George said to me.

"Okay," I smiled as I walked into one of the rooms.

-x-

We discovered that there was a living room, a study right off the living room, dining room, an open kitchen, a bathroom, and a den with a big fireplace all on the first floor. Then we went upstairs, and discovered there were four bedrooms and they shared three bathrooms.

Then there was a smaller room, right next to the master bedroom. George opened the door, and we both stared at the room. It was bright yellow, and there was a crib. I started to blush.

"I don't think I'm going to have kids anytime soon," I said as I closed the door.

"You do want to have kids, right?" George asked me.

"Of course I do, but just not right now," I said as we made our way towards the master bedroom.

I opened the door, and gasped. The room was huge! I looked at the gigantic bed and kicked off my sandals. I dove onto the bed. I sighed. The bed was pure heaven. I sat up and saw that there was a door. I ran over to it and opened the door.

I gasped again. The bathroom was huge! There were two sinks, a bathtub that could seat five people, and a walk-in shower. I opened the door to it, and noticed that ten people could fit in there. I saw an impish grin spread across George's face when he saw the bath tub, and then the grin grew when he saw the shower.

I rolled my eyes at him. "Honestly, George."

"What?" He still had that grin plastered to his face.

"Nevermind," I mumbled as I walked toward what I assumed would be the walk-in closets.

I looked around the closet in awe. It was big. Most of it was empty, but near the end of it, there was elegant party dresses hanging up. I just stared at them. My mum wore those once. I left the beautiful dresses behind and went to look for George.

"So what do you think?" George asked me.

"I need more clothes," I said still thinking of the monstrosity of a closet.

He laughed. I absolutely love his laugh.

He wrapped his arms around my waist, and I leaned back against him.

"When are you planning on moving in?" he asked me.

"I honestly don't know. Probably after I graduate," I said. I felt George tense up while I said this. He probably just realized that I was going to be leaving him to go to school.

I sighed. I still had one more year left of school and then I was free.

"I don't want you to go," he told me.

I sighed again. "I know, George. I don't want to either."

"Then why don't you stay here with me?" he asked.

"Because my parents would want me to finish school, and I can't let them down," I said.

Both of us remained silent.

"We should head back. Your mum is probably sick with worry," I said to him.

We said our goodbyes to Annie and disapperated to the Burrow.

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**A/N: never really liked this chapter, but oh well. :D As always feedback is appreciated. **


	3. Chapter 3: Diamond Rings & Jabbing Ribs

**Disclaimer: I only own Beth & David. I'm just having some fun.

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**_"Basically, I'm a romantic."  
-Pia Zadora

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_Chapter 3: Diamond Rings & Jabbing Ribs

Beth was currently wearing her bathrobe and her hair was still damp due to the fact that she had just finished taking a shower. She started humming a random tune, and went over to her closet to pick out what she was going to wear.

She turned around and saw George staring at her. He was still wearing his pajamas and his hair was all over the place. Beth had noticed that for the past couple of days, George had looked really jumpy and really nervous about something.

"Hey babe," Beth said as she turned back to her closet and picked out a blue t-shirt.

"H-hey," George stammered. Beth arched an eyebrow as she stopped examining the t-shirt and stood there, knowing that something was definitely not right.

"George? Is something wrong?" She asked as she turned around to face him again.

"No, nothing's wrong. Every thing is fine. Why would you think that something was wrong?" he said rather quickly.

Beth's eyebrows shot up. Something is _definitely_ not right.

"Beth, I-"he started, but then stopped as if he was too scared to say it.

"Do you have something to tell me?" she asked.

"Yes, I do," he said.

Beth could tell that he was still hesitant to ask whatever it was that was making him a bumbling fool.

"Well, then spit it out."

-x-

Bill and Fleur were walking by Percy's old bedroom, now Beth's, when they heard some voices. Bill motioned for Fleur to stop.

"Bill what ez et?" Fleur whispered.

Bill just pointed to his ear, and then put his finger to his lips. They then listened to the conversation.

-x-

"Beth, I love you more than anything in the entire world. I'd do anything for you, I hope you know that. I also know that this probably isn't the best time to ask this either. Since we're in a war right now and everything. But I still want, no _need_ to do this," he said.

Beth's eyes widened. "George? What are you doing?"

George went down on one knee.

"Bethany Elizabeth Cooper, will you marry me?" he asked as he pulled out a black velvet box.

Beth just stared at him completely gobsmacked. She hadn't really expected him to propose to her, while she was in _only a bathrobe_. She expected him to propose to her after the war was over. In fact she always had this dream that he would take her to some fancy restaurant and then propose to her at the Eiffel Tower (how they would suddenly appear in France is a mystery). Yes, she does admit that she's a sap when it comes to those things.

Except when she looked at George in the eye, down on one knee, his hair all mussed up, in his bloody pajamas no less, she realized she wouldn't have it any other way.

George was faltering a little bit, hoping to Merlin that this was the right time to ask this. He mentally slapped himself when he realized that he probably should have gone with the fancy restaurant plan.

Beth felt tears well up in her eyes, and she nodded yes in reply.

"Yes, George, I will," she said as she let out a sob.

George grinned like a maniac and got up from his kneeling position and grabbed Beth and spun her around a couple times. He then wiped away the tears, and looked concerned.

"Are you alright?" he asked.

Beth gave him a water smile, "I'm absolutely fantastic. That was one of the most romantic things ever, George."

"What? Me proposing to you while you're only in a bathrobe?" he asked grinning.

She laughed, "When you put it that way, we sound like we're off our bloody rockers."

He laughed as well, and cradled her left hand.

He then opened the box and took the ring out of it, and Beth gasped when she saw it.

"George, it's so beautiful," she said softly. It had a white gold band and there were three diamonds. One big one in the center and two smaller ones on each side.

"Only the best for you," he said softly as he placed it one her ring finger. They were just about to kiss, when Bill and Fleur barged in.

"How fantastique! Congratulations!" Fleur said as she hugged Beth. When everyone had been going through their "let's-hate-Fleur" phase, Beth was the only one that tolerated her. During the Triwizard tournament, they had become good friends, and Beth was glad to see her again. Everyone was also thankful that Beth was around because Fleur wouldn't become Bridezilla every five minutes.

So of course, out of everyone currently staying at the Burrow right now, Fleur was the fondest of Beth.

"Congratulations mate" Bill said as he clapped George on the back. "You proposed to her while she was in her bathrobe, none the less." Beth started to blush when she heard that.

"Let me see ze ring!" Fleur said.

Beth held out her hand, and Fleur gasped.

"Et ez gorgeous!" Fleur said as she gave another hug to Beth, and the younger girl couldn't help but laugh. Then Fleur went over to George to hug him.

Bill went over to Beth and gave her a bear hug.

"Congratulations Squirt," Bill said, using the nickname he had for her when they were younger.

"Thanks Big Bear," Beth replied cheekily. She hadn't called him Big Bear in years.

Bill pulled Fleur away from George and wrapped his arms around her waist.

"So when are you telling the others?" Bill asked.

Beth looked at George and he just shrugged.

"We haven't thought of that yet," she said honestly.

Bill nodded in understanding.

"Well, I think it would be best to tell everyone after your wedding," Beth said. "Your mum right now is in a wedding frenzy, and if we told her now, I'd think she'd explode."

Bill and George laughed softly at this.

"Yeah, we'll promise that we won't tell anyone," Bill said and Fleur nodded in agreement.

"We'll keep it a secret until you two tell everyone," Fleur said as she guided Bill towards the door.

"Just remember that there's an Order meeting tonight. We're going to discuss how we're going to get Harry here," Bill said as he closed the door.

"Now, where were we?" George asked, as an impish grin spread across his face.

"Hmm, I do believe you were going to tell me how absolutely amazing I am, and then," she smiled deviously.

"Beth, you're absolutely amazing, and I must be the luckiest bloke on the face of this earth," he said.

Beth smiled and said, "Then kiss me, you lucky man."

He did just that.

-x-

Everyone was cramped together in the Burrow's kitchen, since the Burrow had been designated to host the Order meetings. They were now just deciding on who would be one of six fake Harrys.

"Any volunteers?" Moody asked.

Hermione, Ron, Fred, Fleur, George and Beth all raised their hands.

George stood up from his seat across from Beth.

"Bethany Cooper," he started to say.

"If you think I'm going to let everyone else go out there and help Harry while I'm going to sit around and do nothing, you will be in for a disappointment," Beth said as she stood up from her chair and looked at George. His eyes were pleading with her to just sit this one out, but she was determined not to.

Suddenly, she remembered what George told her that one night when Arthur was attacked by the snake two years ago, and she faltered.

"_But if anything happened to you…I don't know what I'd do. I can't loose you, Beth."_

She quickly looked away from him and sat back down.

"Nevermind," she mumbled as her anger immediately disappeared. Beth sat down and she started to twist her engagement ring around. She had placed a glamour charm on it, so only she and George could see it.

Ron faked coughed and it sounded a lot like the word 'whipped'. Beth turned to him, but Hermione beat her to it. Hermione poked him in the ribs hard.

"Ow! What was that for?" he asked oblivious.

"You know what, Ronald," Hermione said sternly.

Quickly sending a quiet thank you in Hermione's direction, Beth returned back to listening to the meeting. Moody had replaced her with Dung for being the sixth Potter.

After listening to what Mad-Eye was saying, she realized that she was going to be spending who knows how long at the Burrow with only Molly, Ginny, and David.

She was _already _turning into a nervous wreck.

She sighed. She really had wanted to do this, so then she could be with George. The last time she was fighting, which was only a couple of months ago when the Death Eaters attacked Hogwarts, she had fought hard and got a few scratches, bumps, and bruises in the process, but came out fine. Even though George wasn't by her side through the entire thing, just knowing that George was in the castle, fighting off Death Eaters, made it a little more bearable, in a twisted way. But when she was fighting at the Department of Mysteries, which was a disaster. First of all, George wasn't with her. Second she had just finally got her life together, and instead of fighting for her life, she should have been taking care of things that she had neglected to do; like, taking a nice long nap is just one example. The result of all those factors was being knocked out cold for three days. She shivered even though it was extremely hot in the cramped kitchen.

She hoped with every fiber of her being that nothing would happen to George.

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**A/N: Sooo, here's chapter 3, which is my favorite chapter of all. :D Feedback, as always, is appreciated. **


	4. Chapter 4: Worry Warts & Soaked Shirts

**Disclaimer: Beth and David are mine, everything else belongs to J.K. Rowling.

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**_"A promise must never be broken."  
-Alexander Hamilton

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_Chapter 4: Worry Warts & Soaked Shirts

The day to bring Harry back arrived sooner than expected, since it was believed that somehow the information got leaked about when they were originally going to retrieve Harry.

Everyone was meeting at the Burrow before they went to Harry's house. Molly had just finished making her rounds hugging everyone. George and Beth walked away from everyone else so they could be alone.

They hugged each other tightly and Beth pulled away from him a little so then she could see his face. She placed her hand on his cheek, and he turned his hand to kiss the palm of her hand. When he looked back at her, it was obvious she was trying so hard not to cry.

"Come back to me," she said to him as she still had her hand on his cheek.

"I promise," he said. He grabbed hold of her hand that was resting on his cheek and kissed it. He looked in her eyes and then he kissed her.

She couldn't hold in her tears anymore. She let a few of them slide down her face as he kissed her.

He had felt her tears and pulled away slowly.

"What's the matter?" he asked as he wiped away the tears with the pads of his thumbs.

"I just have this feeling that something bad is going to happen," she said quietly.

"Don't worry about it. Everything is going to be fine," he looked her in the eye. He then kissed her forehead.

"I love you," Beth said.

"I love you too," he said. Then reluctantly, he turned around and joined the others to go to Number Four Privet Drive.

-x-

"Oi! Beth!" David yelled as he waved his hand in front of his older sister's face. She had been sitting in an arm chair in the living room just staring into space.

Beth literally jumped three feet into the air. "What?! Is something wrong?!" she quickly asked.

"No, nothing's wrong. I'm just letting you know that people should be arriving soon," he said.

"Oh okay, thanks David," she gave him a weak smile.

"Hey, don't worry too much about it. Everything will be okay," he said.

She sighed. "I keep telling myself that, but I just can't help but it."

-x-

"Oh Merlin! Ron and Tonks should have been here by now!" Beth said as she started to pace back and forth in the kitchen.

"They probably just got detained, that's all," Ginny sounded confident, but she didn't look like it at all.

Then there was a blue light and all of them hurriedly ran into the backyard to see if anyone had arrived. It was supposed to be Arthur and Fred, but no one was there. They all heard a strangled sob come from Molly, but they couldn't do anything, but wait.

All of this waiting was slowly making Beth go insane.

Molly, Ginny, and David went back inside. Beth decided to stay out there and wait for the next portkey to come, which should be Hagrid and Harry. She only had to wait a couple of minutes, and then the raven haired boy and half-giant appeared.

Beth ran over to Harry and gave him a bone-crushing hug that would rival Molly's and Hagrid's any day.

"Harry! Oh sweet Merlin you're alright! What happened to the others?" Beth asked as she finally let go of him. The others all came out to meet him.

"What do you mean what about the others?" Harry asked.

"Ron, Tonks, Dad and Fred should have been back by now. And in less than a minute Lupin and George should be coming," Ginny said.

Then there was another flash of blue light and Ginny gasped.

"Mum!" Ginny cried.

Lupin and George had appeared, and Beth knew that something was wrong. Lupin was supporting George, who was unconscious and his face was covered in blood. Harry quickly ran over and grabbed a hold of George's legs.

Beth started to shake uncontrollably. "Oh God no, _please_ no. This cannot be happening. He promised," she stared off into the night.

Hagrid had to guide her towards the house because Beth wasn't moving or speaking.

"Come on, Bethany. 'Atta girl," Hagrid said as Beth finally started walking on her own. She walked towards the hallway that leads to the living room, where she knew George would have been carried.

She was going to see George but her body wouldn't let her.

She completely froze.

She leaned back against the wall and slid down to the floor. She pulled her legs up to her chest and buried her head.

"_Don't leave me George,"_ she thought as she started to cry.

-x-

**(Beth's Point of View)**

"Beth?" I heard someone say.

I didn't even have to look up to know that it was Fred. I looked up at him and saw that his eyes were full of concern and what looked like a little relief. He helped me get up from the floor and as soon as I was back on my two feet, he engulfed me in a hug.

"Is he alright?" I asked shakily.

"Yes, even though he lost an ear, he'll be back to normal soon. Actually as soon as he woke up, he cracked a joke about being saint-like because he was holey," Fred said while he rubbed my back soothingly.

I immediately tensed up. "He lost an _ear?"_ I asked.

"Yeah, he did," Fred said.

"Oh, Merlin. It was like I was seeing my boggart all over again from fifth year. And then I thought that my biggest fear had come true and that I was jinxed or something because that would have been the second time that my boggart had come true!" I said working myself up.

"What was the first time?" Fred asked me.

"It was seeing my parent's graves," I said. "And that happened. Then I thought that George was d-d-dead," I started to shake again and I started to cry more.

Fred tried to calm me down, and after a couple of minutes, I managed to stop crying.

"I'm sorry Fred," I apologized as I saw the state his shirt was in.

"What for?" he asked me, confused.

"I soaked your shirt!" I said.

He chuckled a little. "Eh, don't worry about it."

I gave him a small smile.

"Has Hermione arrived yet?" I asked him. He shook his head no, and I saw fear in his eyes.

Since Fred and Hermione don't _display_ their affection as publicly as they used to, I didn't know how much they cared for one another. But that look on Fred's face told me he loved my best friend dearly.

"You go wait for Mione, I should go see George," I said.

"You sure?" he asked me. "Because I'll stay here," he started to say.

"Fred, go wait for your girlfriend. I'll be okay."

"Okay," With that, he left the hallway.

I took a deep breath and walked into the living room.

-x-

George was sitting up on the couch, with a bandage over one of his ears. Currently, Molly was fussing over him.

"Honestly Mum, I'm fine," George whined.

"Are you sure dear?" Molly asked.

"I'm positive," he said firmly.

Molly looked up and saw Beth standing in the doorway, her eyes glistening with tears. She quickly looked back at George and hugged him one more time before she left the room. He hadn't noticed Beth yet because he was looking intently at the grain of the wood flooring.

"George?" Beth asked in a strangled voice, she was trying hard not to burst into tears.

George looked up at her.

"Beth," he said with a sigh of relief.

Beth ran over to him and collided into him. She started to cry again and was now holding onto his shirt for dear life.

"It's all right, I'm here. I'm okay," George kept saying to her.

"God, I'm such a mess," Beth mumbled into his shirt.

George shrugged, "I would be too."

The couple remained silent.

"How come when I woke up you weren't there?" he finally asked her.

Beth pulled away and looked at George.

"When Remus arrived with you, there was so much blood, and I was so scared. I finally managed to walk into the kitchen and into the hallway, but the whole time there were so many scenarios of what happened to you, I just completely froze up," she started to explain.

"I was afraid of what I would see when I went into the living room. I sat down against the wall and curled up into a ball, and prayed to every single god out there that you were alright," she whispered.

George held her more closely to him.

"Fred found me, and I got his shirt wet from crying. I also did that to you too," Beth said as she looked at his now soaked shirt.

"I really don't mind," he said.

Beth looked at his face, and her eyes landed on the bandage.

"George, your ear," she said quietly.

"It could have been a lot worse," he said.

Beth's eyes narrowed. "Who did this to you?"

"Snape," George said.

Beth gasped in response.

"I swear the next time I see him, I'll wring his neck," she muttered under her breath.

"Now Bethany, what did we saw about resorting to violence?" George teased.

Beth sent him a withering look and just grumbled in response.

"Can you stand up?" she asked him.

"I think so, why?" he asked.

"We should probably go to the kitchen, and see if everyone got back," Beth said.

-x-

Everyone turned to look at George and Beth when they entered the kitchen. Molly beckoned George to sit down and he protested at first, but one look at Beth told him that he was going to sit down. Beth sat down on the arm of the chair and George wrapped his arm around her waist.

They all noticed that mostly everyone in the kitchen looked grim, and the others looked shocked. Everyone was there, except for Mad-Eye and Dung. Beth saw Tonks crying into her handkerchief, and also noticed the diamond ring on her finger.

She subconsciously made a note to herself to congratulate Tonks and Remus.

She knew that Tonks wouldn't cry if Dung was gone. Hell, nobody would really miss him.

She had a sinking feeling in her stomach that told her that Mad-Eye was gone. Bill brought out a bottle of firewhiskey and pulled out glasses.

Once everyone had a glass, they raised their glasses.

"Mad-Eye," Bill said.

"Mad-Eye," everyone repeated and took a drink of the alcohol. Beth felt the firewhiskey burn her throat as she swallowed it.

Beth noticed that George looked like he was going to pass out anytime soon.

"Come on George, we need to get you to bed," Beth told him.

"Yeah, okay," he mumbled.

Once he stood up, he started to sway a little. Beth wrapped one arm around his waist and she placed George's arm around her shoulder.

Fred stood up from his spot. "Do you need any help?" he asked.

Beth shook her head. "I'm fine. I'm stronger than I look," she gave them all a reassuring smile and started to go up the stairs with George.

Only a few people noticed the diamond ring on Beth's ring finger. Molly was one of those that noticed it, started to cry after realizing how much worse this night could have been.

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**A/N: I'm awesome for cranking out two chapters today. :D Feedback is appreciated. **


	5. Chapter 5: A Drink & A Chat or Two

**Disclaimer: Beth & David are mine, & that's it.

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_"When people talk, listen completely. Most people never listen."  
-Ernest Hemingway_

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Chapter 5: A Drink & A Chat or Two

"This isn't my room," George mumbled as Beth carried him into her room.

"Yeah, I know. You're sleeping here tonight," she said.

"That's fine with me, but Mum would blow a gasket if she knew about this. She would be going on about how improper it is to sleep with someone if you're not married to them," he said as he sat down on the bed.

"Screw propriety, I wouldn't be able to sleep at all tonight if I'm not near you," she said.

He just nodded in response.

"I'm going to go and get you some pajamas. Promise me you won't pass out on me," Beth said.

"I promise," he started to take off his shoes.

Beth quickly ran to Fred and George's room and grabbed a pair of pajama bottoms and a shirt. When she returned to her room, George had taken off his shoes and socks. After changing into his pajamas, George got under the covers and was already dozing off. She crawled onto the bed and lay down next to him over the covers.

"George?" she asked.

"Hmm?"

"I love you."

"I love you too," he mumbled.

Beth turned to look at George and noticed that he finally passed out.

She sighed. She wasn't tired yet. She slowly got up off the bed and walked out of the room.

"_I hope Remus is still here. I really could do with some chocolate right now,"_ Beth thought as she made her way down the stairs.

-x-

Once Beth made her way down to the kitchen, she saw Fred, Remus, and Bill sitting at the kitchen table drinking firewhiskey.

"How's George?" Fred asked.

"He's out cold," Beth said.

"What about you? I thought we weren't going to see you until morning," Remus said.

"Not tired," Beth muttered as she made her way towards the table.

As she sat down at the table, Bill conjured another glass and filled it with firewhiskey and handed it to her.

She looked at it warily. "I just had a total emotional break down earlier, and you want to give me firewhiskey?" she asked incredulously.

"Yeah," Bill said simply.

"Okay," Beth said and took a sip of the alcohol.

"Are you excited for your last year at Hogwarts?" Remus asked her.

"Don't remind me," she grumbled as she took another sip.

"So I take it you're not excited," Remus pointed out the obvious.

She remained silent, mulling over what she was going to say.

"I'm not going," she said.

"Why?" Bill asked.

"It's not safe. I'm not going back. Nor is David," she said determinedly.

"Does it have anything to with what happened to George?" Bill said quietly.

She visibly tensed, and didn't reply.

"If this damned war hadn't started, I would've tried out for the Quidditch team again this year," Beth said.

"But you can't play Quidditch!" Fred blurted out.

"Ah, but my dear Fred, you are wrong. I made the team last year," she said triumphantly.

"What position?" he asked.

"Beater."

"Did George teach you to play that position?" Remus asked.

"No, Charlie did," she said.

"Charlie?" Bill asked as his eyebrows shot up.

"Yep," she nodded.

"I don't believe it," Fred said.

Then the fireplace went to life and roared green. Charlie stepped through and dusted all of the soot off of his clothes.

"Charlie, my boy! We were just talking about you! Have a seat!" Remus said.

Charlie joined them and Bill poured him a glass.

"So what were you talking about?" Charlie asked.

"Beth here says that you taught her everything she knows about Quidditch, but I don't believe her," Fred said.

Charlie laughed. "Yeah, I did teach her. Why don't you believe her? She sent me a letter saying she made the team last year."

"I don't believe it," Bill said.

"Well, you should," Beth said as she stuck her tongue out playfully.

"So how did the mission go?" Charlie asked.

All the playfulness that was there just fizzled into thin air. Beth visibly tensed up, and quickly got up from her seat.

"I'm bed, tired, morning erm, bye," she stammered lamely. She practically ran out of the room.

-x-

She was about to open her bedroom door when she realized that she never asked Remus if he had any chocolate.

"Damn," she muttered. She sighed and opened the door. George was in the exact same position she had left him in. She quickly changed into some pajamas and crawled into her bed.

She snuggled into his chest, and as if he could sense her presence he wrapped his arm around her waist and pulled her closer. He also sighed happily, and Beth couldn't help but smile into his chest. She took a deep breath, breathing in his scent. It only took her a few minutes before she fell into a deep sleep.

-x-

"Should we wake them up?" Ron asked as he watched the couple sleep, completely unaware that everyone was watching them.

"Ron, you're such an insensitive git. Of course we won't wake them up," Ginny whispered to her older brother.

"I agree, last night must have been emotionally and physically exhausting for both Beth and George," David said wisely.

"Since when did you get all wise?" Fred asked.

"Obviously it wasn't when I was hanging around with you," David countered.

Fred gaped at him. Hermione and Harry were snickering.

"I've been hanging out with Bill, Charlie, and Lupin lately," David said.

"That explains it," Ron said.

Fleur walked down the hallway, and heard whispers coming from Beth's room. Curious, she opened the door and saw a huge mass of people staring at George and Beth.

"What do you all think you're doing?" She asked them tensely.

Everyone jumped at the fact that they just got caught.

"Well, you see," Fred started to explain.

"Get out!" Fleur demanded.

"Yeah, listen to Fleur," Beth mumbled.

"Just like David had said, yesterday was an emotionally and physically exhausting day. We'd like to sleep for at least another half hour," George mumbled.

"You've been awake the entire time?" Ginny asked.

"Yep, pretty much," George said.

"Get out!" Fleur said a bit louder this time.

"I'd leave if I were you. Fleur is down right scary when she's mad," Beth said.

Soon everybody was out of the room.

"Thanks Fleur," George said.

"We owe you," Beth said.

"Et ez no problem," Fleur said as she closed the door.

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**A/N: Okay, so I'm absolutely amazing. :D 3 chapters done in 1 day?! Well, I mostly just did editing, BUT I'm still awesome anyways. As always, Feedback is appreciated. :)**


	6. Chapter 6: Wedding Crashers

**Disclaimer: Don't own any of this except for Beth & David.  
Thanks for all of my reviewers! They keep me going! :D

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**

_"No doubt exists that all women are crazy; it's only a question of degree."  
-W.C. Fields

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_Chapter 6: Wedding Crashers

"Fleur! You look stunning!" Beth said as she walked into Ginny's room already wearing her bridesmaid dress.

"Thank you!" Fleur gushed as she made her way towards Beth to hug her.

"No problem," she replied back.

"Hey Ginny, can you do my hair and make up? I know you've been dying to do it," she asked.

Ginny's face instantly lit up. "Yes! I'd love to do it! Let's go to your room to do it though. We don't want to get in Fleur's way," Ginny said as she pulled Beth out of the room.

-x-

"That should do it!" Ginny said sounding satisfied with her job of making Beth beautiful.

She steered Beth towards the mirror, and Beth gasped. Her hair was down in loose curls and she wore light make up.

"Thank you, Ginny. I definitely owe you," Beth said.

"No problem, Beth. You know I would never pass up the chance to do someone's hair and make up. And you don't owe me anything," the younger girl said.

"Oh, Ginny. I do owe you something. I'll feel bad," Beth insisted.

Ginny sighed. "Well, if you _insist._ If any up beat songs come up during the reception, come dance with me crazily. Then check if Harry is watching me. I'll meet up with you when a dance like that comes on."

Beth laughed. "Okay, I'll help you make Harry regret breaking up with you," she said as she grabbed her bouquet and walked out the room.

-x-

"_Deep breaths, Beth," s_he thought to herself as she walked down the aisle after Ginny. She locked eyes with George and gave him a small smile and absentmindedly twisted her ring. George saw that little action, and he smiled back at her.

A huge sigh of relief escaped her when she walked towards her designated spot without even tripping.

Beth wasn't really paying attention to the ceremony; she was off thinking about what her wedding would be like. She had just started thinking about what her wedding dress would be like when she heard the officiator said, "I am now happy to present Mr. and Mrs. Weasley."

That snapped her back up to reality and she took George's arm as they walked down the aisle.

-x-

True to her word, the first up beat song that came on during the reception, Beth went over to dance with Ginny.

"Hey, Gin. Harry _and_ Viktor Krum are watching us," she said highly amused.

"Really?" Ginny said as she looked in the same direction that the older girl was staring. A smirk graced her face when she saw Harry looking at her.

-x-

Once the song was over, Beth went looking for George, but was intercepted by Auntie Muriel.

"So you're Beatrice Cooker?" Auntie Muriel asked.

"It's Bethany Cooper, Auntie Muriel," Beth said.

Auntie Muriel dismissed that as if she didn't hear anything.

The ancient woman looked her over, "Arms are too skinny and you slouch too much."

Beth stared wide-eyed at the woman, _"She's pointing out all of my faults? I know she does this to everyone, I heard Hermione mention that she told her that her ankles were too big or something like that. But I was hoping that I would have been ignored or something." _

"Excuse me, but I was wondering if Beth would like to dance with me?" George asked.

"Hello George," the old woman said. She looked him over a couple of times. "Your ears are lopsided."

"I would love to, George," Beth said as she was being directed away from the ancient woman. After they finally reached the dance floor, she sighed in relief.

"What?" George asked.

"You just prevented me from physically harming an old lady," she said.

George burst out laughing. "What was she saying?"

"She said that my arms were too skinny and that I have bad posture," she looked away from George.

"Beth, look at me," he said softly.

She hesitantly looked at him. "Don't listen to the barmy old bat. She doesn't know what she's talking about. She _did_ say that my ears were lopsided," Beth laughed at this.

"I swear George, your Aunt is insufferable," Tonks said as she and Remus were now dancing next to the couple.

"She had a go at you too?" George asked incredulously.

"Yep, she kept going on and on about how the color pink is distasteful," Tonks crinkled her nose in annoyance.

"She said that my arms are too skinny and I slouch," Beth added.

Both Remus and George laughed at this. The two girls rolled their eyes.

"Hey. Congratulations on getting engaged," Tonks said.

"Thanks. Congratulations on getting married," The two couples chatted for awhile about weddings when a glowing lynx floated down to the dance floor very close to them.

The deep voice of Kingsley emitted from the lynx and said, _"The Ministry has fallen. Scrimgeour is dead. They are coming."_

-x-

All hell broke loose after the lynx disappeared. Everyone was running around to get out of there.

"David!" Beth yelled as she frantically looked for her little brother. George grabbed a hold of her hand and tugged her in the other direction.

"Come on Beth. We need to get out of here. I'm sure he's fine," George said quickly.

Beth called out for David one more time, and again she couldn't find him. She sighed and turned towards George.

"Okay, let's go. We should go to my house," she said as she allowed George to lead the way.

The two apparated away but not before they saw people with dark robes and masks arriving.

-x-

"Miss Bethany! I wasn't expecting you for a while!" Annie said as she saw the two walked into the house.

"I know, Annie. Some bad people decided to show up to the wedding we were attending," Beth said.

Annie nodded grimly, "Dark times these are."

"Would you like anything?" the house elf asked.

"Some hot chocolate would be nice. Thank you," Beth said as she went into the living room and sat down on the couch.

She kicked off her shoes and placed her purse onto the coffee table. George sat down next to her and draped his arm over her shoulder.

"What do we do now?" Beth asked softly.

"We wait," George said just as softly.

With impeccable timing, Annie came walking in with two hot chocolates.

"Thank you Annie," Beth said as she took a small sip of the hot chocolate.

"If you need anything, just let Annie know," the house elf said and then she left the room.

The room was silent, the two of them just drinking their hot chocolate. George felt something vibrate in his pant pocket. He quickly set his mug onto the coffee table and pulled out his mirror.

"George!" Fred said to him.

"Fred! Is everyone okay?" George quickly asked.

"Yes, everyone's fine. David's here too. Harry, Ron, Hermione went off on that quest Dumbledore sent them to do," Fred said that last part somewhat bitterly.

"Where are you guys?" George asked.

"Auntie Muriel's," Fred made a look of pure disgust on his face."We're hiding here."

George winced.

"Where are you at?" Fred asked.

"Beth and I are at her house," he replied, "Let us know when it's safe to go to Auntie Muriel's or the Burrow."

"Aye aye captain, I'm just glad you two are safe. I've got to get going, I've been in the bathroom far too long, and everyone will start to worry," Fred said.

George laughed at this. "Okay, hopefully we'll see you soon."

"Yeah."

"Bye."

Fred's face disappeared, and he placed the mirror on the coffee table and sighed.

"They're okay," Beth whispered with a look of relief on her face

"Yeah, everything's going to be alright," he said.

Beth snuggled closer to George and let out a sigh. The two of them sat together like that for a while, and when George looked down at Beth, he noticed that she had fallen asleep.

He smiled and carefully picked her up from the couch and started to walk up the stairs to the bedroom.

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**A/N: Heeere's chapter 6! So what do you think? This is one of the last chapters that I had to just edit. Since I changed the plot dramatically, I've got to write the chapters from now on. The next chapter will be about going back to school, I _think_. Feedback, as always, is appreciated!**


	7. Chapter 7: It's The Little Things

***NOTE, I MADE SOME CHANGES TO THE PLOT. REREAD CHAPTER 5, PLEASE. BETH WILL NOT BE RETURNING TO HOGWARTS. If This is your first time reading this story o' mine, then disregard the caps.*  
Please enjoy the highly anticipated eighth chapter of There's No Time Like War Time.**

**Oh yeah, I don't own any of this lovely world, it all belongs to J.K. Rowling

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**_"I have a simple philosophy: Fill what's empty. Empty what's full. Scratch where it itches."  
Alice Roosevelt Longworth

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"How did it feel for you when September first came along and you weren't going back to school?" Beth asked quietly, as she stared at the floor of her kitchen.

It was September first, and Beth felt out of place still being in her pajamas and not going to Kings Cross.

George, who was making breakfast, paused. "It was strange, to be honest," he said slowly, flipping over the pancakes he was making.

"It almost didn't feel right not going back, but now it doesn't phase me anymore," he shrugged.

She nodded, sipping her mug of tea that she had on the counter. Although she had decided not to return to Hogwarts, she still decided to continue her studies.

"Breakfast is ready," George said, handing her a plate. She smiled and wondered if she would ever return to Hogwarts.

*

Beth and George decided to remain living at her house, claiming that it would be too crowded when the Burrow was deemed safe to move back into. She learned that prior to her birthday Remus and Arthur visited the property and placed several protective wards around it. They were as safe as the Burrow was. Deciding that they were going to live there, it also meant that Fred and David moved into the house as well.

Beth, although she adored the privacy of living with just George, she knew they would have plenty of living in an empty house after the war was over. She also couldn't bear to keep the twins apart in a time like this.

After hearing the news that Remus and Tonks were expecting, Molly and Beth had brought it upon themselves to visit her. With Remus slowly warming up to the idea of becoming a father, Tonks adored spending time with the Weasley matriarch and the younger girl.

Currently Beth was lying on the floor of Remus and Tonks' flat eating ice cream.

"I love ice cream," a pregnant Tonks said, smiling indulgently as she shoveled another spoonful into her mouth. Albeit Tonks had some rather bizarre cravings, like pumpkin pie covered in pickle relish, she always craved ice cream.

"Me too," Beth eagerly agreed. She always loved spending time with Tonks; living with three boys was rather tiresome. The two of them silently ate their ice cream perfectly content in the silence.

With a flash, the fireplace roared green and Remus emerged. He found the sight before him very amusing, considering both of them looked like they were in their own versions of paradise, and it was only because of ice cream.

A small smile crept onto his face; it was the little things that helped you through the day that mattered the most.

"Hullo, ladies," Remus said as he walked towards the couch.

"Hiya Remus. How are you?" Beth asked, staring up at him with her spoon still in her mouth.

"I'm good, you?" He asked, leaning against the back of the couch. He leaned over and gave Tonks a peck on the cheek.

"I'm content," the younger sighed happily, closing her eyes.

"You're lying down on the cold floor eating ice cream and you're happy?" the werewolf asked, amused.

She opened one of her eyes. "I'm with people I care about. I'm eating ice cream, and it just so happens that this floor is mighty comfortable. There's no where else I'd rather be," she said.

"Oh, I know where one place you would rather be than here," Tonks said, pointing her spoon at the young witch.

"Oh? And where's that?" Beth asked, sitting up.

"With George," Tonks said, winking.

Beth looked down at her bowl and felt her cheeks burn.

"_I so set myself up for that,"_ she thought.

"Speaking of George, what's he doing?" Remus asked as he moved around the couch and sat down.

"There's a small building of sorts on our property. He's converted it into his workshop and office. He's with Fred, going through the many piles of orders they have," Beth said. "He said that he wouldn't know what time he would be done, so I was sitting on the couch doing nothing. So I decided to check and see if the lovely Mrs. Lupin was doing anything."

"Was she doing anything?" Remus asked, eyeing his wife suspiciously. Even though he was still weary of her being pregnant, he still cared.

"Well, if you consider lying on the couch staring up at the ceiling _something_, then yeah. Once Tonks insisted that I come over, I wrote a note to George saying where I was, and now here we are."

"Trust me; I'm glad you came here because I thought I was going to die from boredom," Tonks said honestly.

The two girls giggled, earning a smile from Remus.

"Have you thought of any names yet?" Beth asked.

"We both decided on naming the baby Teddy if he's a boy. However, we haven't thought of a girl name yet," Remus replied.

"So you want it to be a surprise?" she asked.

"Yes, I think it would spoil the fun if we decided to find out," Tonks said.

"I dare you to name your daughter Begonia," Beth said, her eyes dancing with amusement.

Remus looked at her with a look of pure horror, "Absolutely not!"

"What about Samantha?"

"Nah," Tonks said, wrinkling her nose.

"Emma?"

"Eh, it's an okay name. But I'd want her name to be a little less common," Tonks said.

Beth thought for awhile, going through several names in her head.

"Jade?"

"Jade," Remus said, trying the name out. It appeared he liked the name.

"Jade Lupin," Tonks said. "It's perfect."

"Well, I guess we just solved the issue of naming our baby," Remus said, smiling.

"Yes it does, and honestly, I was starting to worry we never would have thought of a girl name. Thank you, Beth. Are you finished with your bowl?" Tonks asked as she sat up from the couch.

"It's no problem, really. Do you want me to help?" Beth said as she handed Tonks her empty bowl.

"No, no. I'll do them. I'm still perfectly capable of washing the dishes," the older woman waved her protests away.

"I'll help you clean the dishes," Remus said as he got up from the couch and followed his wife into the kitchen.

Sighing, she sat up from the floor and crawled onto the couch. With a big yawn, she stared at the old rug, thinking about when she would finally get the chance to pick out baby names. Her eyes got heavy, and soon she fell asleep.

Tonks and Remus both walked into the living room and discovered that their guest had fallen asleep on the couch, and draped an old patched quilt over her sleeping form.

*

Hours later, the fire roared to life and George stumbled into the Lupin's flat.

"Hullo George," Remus said as he entered the room, coffee mug in hand.

"Hey Remus. Where's Beth?" he asked.

"On the couch, she fell asleep," Remus said as they walked into the living room.

Smiling at his fiancée, he thought she looked adorably cute curled up on the couch. He walked over to the couch and gently picked her up.

"I'll see you at the next Order meeting, yeah?" George asked as he made his way back to the fireplace.

"Of course," Remus said, nodding his farewell.

"Okay, see you then."

With a roar from the fireplace, George and Beth were gone.

*

"George?" Beth asked quietly in their dimly lit room. She sat up in bed, and realizing she was still wearing her jeans, she stumbled out of bed.

"Yeah, hun?" he said, sticking his head out of the bathroom door, his toothbrush in hand.

"What time is it?" she asked, as she walked into her closet.

"It's only been a half hour since I picked you up from the Lupins' flat. Don't worry, David's safe and sound at Bill and Fleur's," he said before brushing his teeth. Since it was mid-October, it was deemed acceptable to ask if he could visit the newlywed couple. Bill had said that he was welcome to visit them, and would help him with his school work. Even Fleur offered to help and possibly teach him some new French spells.

She made a noise in response, and quickly changed into her pajamas, and soon joined him in brushing her teeth.

Sliding into bed, both of them got comfortable.

"George," she said, tracing a random plan on his arm that was draped over her waist. She turned around in the bed and faced him.

"How many kids do you want to have?" she said quietly.

"Ten," he said.

"George!" she hit him on the shoulder.

"Ow, I was kidding! But seriously, I'll be happy with however many kids you want to have," he said.

"Four. I want four kids. Two girls and two boys," she whispered.

"Sounds perfect, love," he chuckled, pulling her closer to him.

Sighing contently, she slowly fell asleep where she dreamed of children with red hair and blue eyes.

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**A/N- Teehee, I love how this chapter turned out. It was very dull and choppy at first, but I love adding all of the details. I hope you enjoyed as well. OH. And check out a one-shot featuring the ever so lovely couple. It's called Felidae. Check it outt. And I'd love your feedback on this. **

**What should I call this series? I'm at a loss as to what to call it. Help please?  
**


	8. Chapter 8: 'Ear Me Out

**Disclaimer: I own nothing except the OC's.  
Here's the next chapter. Enjoy.

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**_"Anger is a short madness."  
-Horace

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**

It was now November and the war was starting to take its toll on everyone. Everyone had a different method to deal with the stress and burdens war brought. Fred threw himself into the mail-order business, and the planning of _Potterwatch,_ but everyone knew this change in work ethic was because he was trying to not think about Hermione. Molly had taken to carrying around her family clock with her wherever she went. David and Beth had their school work, and they both oddly found reading about Devil's Snare or Ancient Runes soothing – it both gave them a sense of normalcy that they both desperately wished for.

George, unbeknownst to everyone, was still struggling with the fact that he lost an ear. Although he joked about it, that still didn't prevent him from feeling self conscious about how he looked. He felt bitter that now everyone could tell who Fred was and who George was. They weren't identical anymore and it was like he was robbed of his identity. He knew that people looked at him oddly and sometimes in horror, that was mostly the kids, when they realized he was missing an ear.

That stung the most. He didn't want to be thought of as a freak.

It was during one particular Order meeting at the Burrow that it became apparent to Beth that something was bothering George.

She instantly knew something was wrong when he didn't hold her hand underneath the table throughout the meeting. Once the meeting was over, she turned to look at George.

"George is there something wrong?" she asked, but he just shook his head and didn't explain.

Throughout dinner, he didn't speak much and everyone noticed his change in behavior. Everyone kept shooting questioning glances at Beth, but she just shrugged. It was when he quickly excused himself from the table and walked out of the house that Beth grabbed her coat and followed after him.

"George? What's wrong?" she asked, slowly making her way towards him.

He laughed bitterly, "Everything."

"I'm a freak! I'm not blind, I see all the stares people give me, and I hate it! I'm disfigured! I'm not whole anymore because my ear is missing," he yelled.

"George, stop. You're not a freak. You're-"

George cut her off. "Why do you care? I've noticed you avoid looking at my ear. You're repulsed by the sight of it," he said bitterly.

Beth tensed up, and paled. She _had_ avoided looking at his non-existent ear, but it wasn't for that reason. Every time she looked at it, it brought back memories of seeing George being carried in by Remus and Harry, and the blood. Oh Merlin, there was so much blood.

He never let her have a chance to speak.

"See? You're disgusted with me. Why don't you just leave me then, I don't want to repulse you!" He yelled.

Tears welled up in her eyes. Leave him? Was he out of his mind? She narrowed her eyes at him.

"Have you eyes? Or are you blinded by your insecurities?" She yelled.

"Of course I have eyes!" he yelled indignantly.

"You're obviously not using them right now because if you were you would notice that you're breaking my heart right now!" She screamed and turned away. She ran to the apparation point. She didn't want to say anything more that could cause even more damage.

"Where are you going?" he yelled, making his way towards her.

"Away! You obviously need time to yourself and I'm going to give you that time, starting…NOW!"

With a loud crack, she was gone.

"Beth? What the hell are you doing here?" a confused Oliver Wood asked her. With such an unexpected visit, he eyed her somewhat suspiciously. He gripped his wand in his free hand and pointed it at her.

"Tell me something that will prove to me that you truly are Beth Cooper," he said.

Beth sniffled and nodded, "You were my first kiss, Oliver. In my third year, the year you finally won the Quidditch Cup, the twins decided we should all play the game spin the bottle. We all played for a couple of rounds, and when it my first turn it landed on you. I then ended up kissing Lee Jordan and Harry Potter," she said, looking at him.

He lowered his wand and smiled sheepishly at her. "Sorry, Beth, but we gotta take these extra precautions."

She nodded, understanding completely. "Is Katie working today?" she asked as he let her inside the comfortable flat.

As if on cue, Katie rushed out of the bedroom, wearing her St. Mungo's robes.

"I work the graveyard shift, but with this war, it's a lot livelier," she said as she took a final glance in a mirror in the hallway, readjusting a stray strand of her dirty blond hair.

"I was wondering if I could crash here for the night," Beth said quietly, staring down at the hardwood floor.

"George?" Katie asked, her mossy green eyes showing concern.

"Yeah," the younger girl nodded.

"Of course you can, sweetheart. Oliver, dear, could you make the bed in the spare bedroom?" Katie asked. It wasn't a question, more like a demand.

"Yes, madam," Oliver mockingly bowed and quickly disappeared from the living room.

Katie rolled her eyes and looked at Beth. "I wish I could stay and talk, but I have to get to work. There's some left-over lasagna, you should heat it up because Oliver has the tendency to burn things," Katie said.

Beth gave her a small smile, "Thanks, Kates."

"It's no problem, hun. If you can't wait for the morning to talk about whatever has happened, talk to Oliver," the medi-witch in training said.

Beth snorted. Having a heart-to-heart conversation with Oliver Wood? Unlikely.

Katie laughed, "You'd be surprised. He's a very good listener."

"Alright, I'll see you in the morning," Beth said.

Katie nodded and hurriedly made her way towards the fireplace. With a flash of green, she flooded to St. Mungo's.

"Ol, the lasagna's ready!" Beth said, magically lifting the dish out of the stove and setting it on the counter.

Having been over to Oliver and Katie's flat several times over the years, she knew where everything was in the kitchen. Opening a cabinet, she got two plates and in another two glasses.

"Thanks, Beth," he said as she handed him one of the cups. He noticed something and grabbed her hand.

Looking at the diamond ring, he let out a low whistle. "So he finally proposed, eh?"

Beth smiled and nodded weakly, the topic of George being a sore subject.

"And why haven't you told Katie yet?" he asked, eyebrow arched. He let go of her hand and went to serve himself some lasagna.

"I told her, months ago," Beth said as she sat down.

"Months? What? Why wasn't I informed of this?" he asked, sounding a little hurt. He sat down in the seat across from her.

"Because, dearest Oliver, I wanted it to be a secret," she said. "At the time, we hadn't even announced to his parents that we were engaged."

"Oh, I see," he said nodding.

The two ate dinner with bits of small talk here and there. The two had always been on friendly terms; only when he and Katie started dating was when he could say that he and Bethany Cooper were good friends.

He didn't know what exactly caused this unexpected visit, but he knew it consisted of a fight with George. It was a serious one, too. George and Beth fought, all couples do, but they didn't have huge rows.

He decided he would question her about it after dinner.

"What did you and George fight about?" he asked bluntly, as they sat in the living room watching a small muggle television.

Beth turned and stared at him. She shifted uncomfortably.

"It appears that the loss of his ear hit him harder than I thought. It was after the Order meeting, that he decided to let me know what his true feelings were on the matter," she said. Oliver was a member of the Order, so she hadn't divulged an important secret.

"He's taken it hard, hasn't he?" he said.

She nodded, her eyes shining with tears.

"He's made himself believe he's a freak. He believes I'm repulsed by him because I don't look at his missing ear, and he said that I should leave him because he doesn't want to disgust me," she said, tears sliding down her face.

"Are you?"He asked.

"What?" she sniffed, looking at him confused.

"Are you disgusted with him?" he clarified.

She shook her head, "Heavens no! I avoided looking because it would remind me of that night. Oh Oliver, if you had been there that night, you would understand. There was so much blood, I thought he was gone," she sighed.

"What did you say to him?"

"I told him he was blinded by his insecurities because he should know that I would never leave him. I'd rather die than leave him. How could he think I'm that shallow to leave him because he's missing an ear? If he lost a leg, or was severely burned, I'd still be by his side," she said desperately.

"Why hadn't he told me that he was hurting? He told me to never keep something bottled up, that I should let it all out. Why couldn't he follow his own advice?" she rambled.

Oliver sat up from his seat and sat down next to her on the couch. The poor girl looked like she was about to break into several little pieces.

"It was only a couple of months ago when we were talking about having kids. How could he think I'm disgusted with him? I love all of him, with one ear or two," she burst into tears.

Oliver, at a loss for words, wrapped his arms around the girl he had begun to view as a little sister. He continued to hold her as she sobbed and mumbled "How could he?"

She woke up early the next morning, to find Katie and Oliver talking to each other. They both stared at her guiltily, and she knew they had been talking about her.

"Hey guys, I'm going to go back home. I'm gonna go talk to George. He's probably in worst shape than I'm in," she mumbled.

Katie instantly stood up, "You know you can come here anytime you want, right?"

Beth smiled, "I know."

Brushing the soot off of her, she listened to hear any movement around the house. She heard none, and realized that none of the occupants would be up at seven-thirty in the morning. Slowly creeping up the stairs, she made it towards their bedroom.

She slowly opened the door and saw that George was still in bed, facing the opposite wall. The blankets were messily spread across the bed, and it looked like George had been tossing and turning all night. Letting out a soft sigh, she carefully removed all of her clothes until she was only in her underwear. She slowly slipped into bed.

Inching her way towards his back, she gently draped her arm across his waist. Nuzzling her head against his back, she tried to prevent the tears from falling. She failed miserably.

George woke up to find the bed shaking slightly. Confused, he opened his eyes and noticed that he wasn't alone in the bed.

"I'm sorry," he whispered to her as he turned around and wrapped his arms around the girl he loved. He knew that this was far from over, but there would be time later to talk. For now, they just needed each other.

* * *

A/N: Feedback would be loveelly. Oh, and I have a feeling this story is going to take a real dark turn. I think I had the two of them go through the war without enough hardship and tragedy. What do you think? REVIEWW PLEASE.


	9. Chapter 9: Missing, Presumed Dead

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything, except for Beth.  
The chapter is gonna get angsty near the end.**

**

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**

_"With radio, the listener absorbs everything."  
-Bob Edwards

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_

"George, I'm off to Leesh and Angie's flat," Beth said as she shrank all of the presents into her pocket.

"Alright, Beth. Tell both of them that Fred and I say hi," he said as he kissed her on the cheek. Things were still a little shaky between the two of them since the incident, but both of them realized that every relationship has bumps in the path.

The argument would be like a bump on top of the bump known as the Second Wizarding War.

"Of course. I love you," she said as she grabbed a handful of floo powder.

"Love you, too."

The fire roared to life, and she disappeared.

xxx

"Time to open presents!" Alicia said as she ran into the living room of the flat she shared with Angie.

"I don't think I've seen her this excited about anything since we won the Quidditch Cup all those years ago," Beth mumbled to Angie as they casually walked into the living room.

"Just wait until you see her on Christmas Day, it's only the twenty third," Angie mused, as she sat down on the floor in front of the fire.

After the presents were sorted out, the two girls insisted that Alicia should open her presents first.

Being quite the artist, she got some expensive art supplies from Angie and a charm bracelet and a picture of the four girls all hanging out in the Common Room from Beth.

Angie opened her gifts next. She received some new Quidditch equipment from Alicia and received the same picture in a different frame and also got a charm bracelet as well from the youngest member of the quartet.

"So what do the charms represent?" Alicia asked as she played with each of the charms. She was already wearing it.

"Well, the lion represents Gryffindor. The broom represents your love of flying/Quidditch, and then your birthstone is self-explanatory. The leaf and snowflake represent your favorite season," Beth explained.

"Aw, that's so sweet!" Alicia said giving her a big hug, and Angie soon joined.

"I'm glad you two like it. I hope Kates likes it as much as you do," the younger witch said nervously.

"Knowing Katie, she'll love it," Angie said, with a smile. They all sat silently in thought of their friend - she and her family had gone to Scotland to spend Christmas with Oliver's family.

"Now open your gift! Angie and I bought this together!" Alicia said, breaking the silence.

Beth looked at the white box for a moment before she opened it. Pushing away the tissue paper in it, she realized it contained a black lacy thing. Actually, it was two black lacy things. She instantly went red.

"George will go absolutely wild when he sees you wearing it," Angie said with a wink.

"Uhm, we never have..." Beth stammered.

"You haven't?" Alicia asked mouth agape.

"No," Beth squeaked as her face went a shade redder.

There was an awkward pause.

"We thought you had," Angie said sheepishly.

Beth shrugged. "Before our big fight, it was more likely to happen, but now..."

"You're trying to remain on solid ground?" Angie asked.

Beth nodded, and then smiled.

"But if it does happen, I'll be prepared for it," she grinned.

"Oh, I was so worried you wouldn't like it! Oh, Angie, we gotta tell her some tips," Alicia gushed.

Beth mentally groaned, knowing this would be a rather interesting conversation.

xxx

Everyone was sitting in the living room of the Burrow, and it was unnervingly quiet. Only eight of them were present, and to the Weasley family the holidays were usually spent with the total amount of people in the double digits.

Beth noticed Fred looking out the window dejectedly. He had finally managed to somewhat cope with the absence of his dear Hermione, but with the dark circles under his eyes, the holidays had hit him hard. She managed to break herself away from George's grasp and sat down next to him, and he had barely acknowledged her presence.

"Fred?"she said as she placed her hand on his shoulder.

He solemnly looked at her, and she swore she felt her heart break a little. Without saying another word, she pulled him into a hug and started to stroke his back soothingly. Anyone could see that Beth was having a difficult time trying not to cry.

As everyone looked on, they realized that all Fred really needed was a hug. Well, having Hermione here would have been better, but a hug would do for now.

xxx

"Happy Anniversary, love!" George said as he handed Beth a bouquet of daisies.

"Oh George, they're wonderful!" she exclaimed, smiling brightly.

"Only the best for you, my sweet," he grinned as he quickly kissed her.

"Now, I want you to spend the day pampering yourself. Take a bubble bath, and whatever girls do to pamper themselves. Then I want you to be ready by seven o'clock. Dress fancy, my dear, we're going out!" he exclaimed.

Beth's eyes widened. "George? Are you sure it's safe to go out?"

"Quite sure. Don't worry, love, everything is going to be fine. Now, go pamper yourself!"

xxx

Hermione sat hunched over on a step stool while listening to the latest Potterwatch. Harry walked into the tent momentarily, desperate for any news. Even though the radio used to drive him mad, he doesn't think it's so bad anymore.

"We are sad to report, our dear listeners, that there was an attack in Muggle London during the New Years holiday," River, or Lee Jordan, said solemnly.

Hermione's breath hitched, and her shoulders tensed. No matter how deep she got into this war, she always tensed when she hears there were attacks. She just prayed, selfishly, that it was nobody she knew.

"Five Muggles were killed during the attack and ten were wounded. This just wasn't Muggles, there are some witches and wizards in the death toll," he continued.

Harry clenched his fists, hoping that there was nobody he knew.

"...and Bethany Cooper, missing presumed to be dead," he said finally.

There was a pause over the radio and in the tent. Hermione quickly stood up from the stool, tipping it over in the process as she rushed over to her makeshift bedroom, collapsing into a fit of uncontrollable sobs.

Harry cursed and kicked the stool in anger. He didn't understand, surely she would have known better to go to Muggle London during these times. His shoulders slumped in despair as he stood in the main area of the tent, listening to Hermione's crying.

If he was going to be honest, she had done enough crying to last four lifetimes. Harry Potter wasn't going to admit that he had cried, too. He wiped away some of his own tears and went back outside the tent to resume watch.

xxx

They found Beth lying on the steps of the Ministry one week later in the same red dress albeit it was torn beyond repair. She was bloodied, bruised, and unconscious. Once found, she was immediately sent to St. Mungo's to recover.

* * *

A.N: Next chapter, St. Mungo's.


	10. Chapter 10: Dead Eyes, Bill, & Reunions

**AVAST THAR BE ANGST AHEAD!  
Also, implied rape. If this makes you feel uncomfortable, don't read.  
Otherwise, enjoy this chapter. **

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_ "Take a breath, just take a seat. You're falling apart and tearing at the seams."  
- Heaven Forbid by The Fray_

* * *

George was pacing the hallways of St. Mungo's. Even though his left leg was causing him pain, he still soldiered on. He blamed himself for all of this. He just wanted Beth to have an anniversary she would never forget. He paused in his pacing, a thought coming to mind.

"This is one anniversary she will never forget," he mumbled bitterly.

He wondered if she will ever forgive him.

=x=

She stared blankly at the wall as Katie looked her over. Having just woken up, she still was pretty out of it. The sight broke the older girl's heart, and she was thankful she had already run the standard tests already. After she managed to clean Beth up, she was now able to determine the true extent of her injuries.

Severe contusions on her hips and thighs.

"Could you please lift your sleeves up?" Katie asked quietly.

With shaky hands, Beth pulled her sleeves up and stared at the bruises that were scattered over her arms, especially her wrists. Trembling, the younger girl burst into sobs. Instantly, Katie stopped her examination and comforted her.

"Should I get George?" she asked.

"No!" Beth croaked out too loudly.

There was a pause.

"I can't see him," she said quietly. She wished more than anything that her mother was here.

Katie nodded in understanding. "Who would you like to see, then?"

"Who else is out there?" she asked.

"Bill and Molly."

xxx

Although confused with Beth's request, Katie granted it nonetheless. She stepped out of Beth's room and took in the scene playing out in front of her.

There were only currently three people waiting outside her room - Bill, Molly, and George. They had to keep it that way for safety's sake. Everyone would alternate taking turns being here while Beth got better - George was the only one that remained there constantly.

Molly looked like she was knitting one of the infamous Weasley sweaters, but how she managed to be so calm and not mess up was beyond Katie. What she didn't know was that Molly had to magically unloosen up to over ten knots, and had to start over completely when even magic failed to unloosen them without leaving a gaping hole.

Bill was looking through one of the supplied magazines, with a rather bored expression on his face. He had managed to get George to stop pacing and now that he had, Bill didn't know what he should do.

Looking rather uncomfortable in his seat, George instantly stood up when he saw Katie. She looked at him and it broke her heart to see how much of a mess he was.

"Was she..?" he didn't even dare finish that question, hoping beyond hope that those bastards hadn't touched her.

Katie nodded sadly, "She was."

Molly stopped knitting and burst into tears. Bill tossed the magazine aside and hunched over, not believing this had happened.

"May I see her?" George asked.

Katie sighed and didn't answer him.

"Bill," she said.

The eldest Weasley child looked up, confusion written all over his face.

"Yes?"

"She wants to see you."

George looked at Katie in shock. Why would his lovely Beth want to see _Bill_?

"George, calm down. She told me she can't see you at the moment. Give her time," Katie pleaded.

George nodded mutely as Bill got up from his chair.

"Do you have an Extendable Ear on you, by chance?" Bill asked quietly as he made his way towards her room.

"Of course," George said.

"Good," he said simply as he silently entered the room.

xxx

George couldn't believe it. Beth had wanted to see Bill and not him. It made no sense to him whatsoever. He was dying to know what she was feeling. Hell, he just wanted to see her.

Running a hand over his face, he grabbed the extendable ear out of his pocket and began to listen. He just hoped he could control himself.

xxx

"Hey Squirt," Bill said quietly as he walked into the room. He took in her appearance, and it took all of his self control to not go out and kill every single Death Eater he came across.

She was practically dead, her big blue eyes hollow and lifeless.

"Hey," she said quietly. She was in a sitting position with her arms wrapped around her legs. He gingerly sat down next to her and stared at her, trying to think of something to say that wasn't insensitive.

"You want to know why I asked for you," she stated quietly, her eyes searching his.

He shifted awkwardly on the bed, having been caught off guard by her perceptiveness. She had always been perceptive.

"Yeah," he said finally.

Beth remained silent for a moment, staring off into space.

"Remember when I was little and used to be scared of thunderstorms?" she said in a faraway voice.

"Yeah, you used to run into my room and hold onto me for dear life," he said fondly.

"Ginny and I would always hide under the blankets scared out of our wits, but it wouldn't help us much. We would always run into your room after the second crash of thunder. Ginny would go to Charlie and I would go to you," she said.

He smiled.

"Then there were the times Ginny and I were convinced there were monsters in her closet. It would be three in the morning, sometimes four, and you would sleepily assure us nothing was there."

She turned to stare at him.

"I can't see him, Bill," she said.

"Huh?" he said, snapping out of those memories.

"George. I can't see him," she clarified.

"Why not?"

"Because I'm broken. Dirty. Unclean," she stated.

"Beth-"

"I should have tried to fight them off harder. I shouldn't have given in. I should have been more aware that night. I hate myself that I'm scared of him," she ranted.

"Of George?"

She nodded.

"I'm afraid he'll think I'm tainted and will want nothing to do with me. I'm afraid I'll look into his eyes and all I'll see is disgust and revulsion. I'm afraid he'll leave me," she whispered.

Bill wrapped his arm around her shoulder.

"He loves you, Beth. Let him prove that to you."

"I wish thunderstorms and monsters in closets were still the things that scared me," she said brokenly.

Burying her face into his shoulder, she sobbed.

xxx

Beth was sitting at the kitchen table with David. He was currently reading through one of his textbooks. Even though he wasn't at Hogwarts, Beth insisted he studied the material so he wouldn't be behind. David closed the textbook he was reading and let out a sigh of relief.

"Finished?" Beth asked, as she traced the rim of her coffee mug.

"For today, at least," he stretched and a satisfying pop was heard.

Beth's nose wrinkled in disgust.

"Sorry," he said sheepishly.

The siblings were silent, only the clock chiming the half hour could be heard.

"Have you talked to him yet?" asking the question he's been dying to know for the past two weeks.

Beth sighed, shaking her head.

"You need to talk to him soon, Beth. You love him, after all. End his pain," David said as he hovered over the table.

"It's not like George is the only one in pain here," she snapped.

"I wasn't implying that he was. Talk to him, Beth. Only George can help you through this," David pleaded.

His older sister remained silent, but he left the room knowing he got his point across.

xxx

She was screaming in her sleep.

George scrambled towards the master bedroom and was relieved to find the door unlocked.

She was crying and violently thrashing about. He grabbed a hold of her shoulders.

"Beth, wake up. You're having a nightmare. Wake up, love," he said as he gently tried to shake her awake.

Beth's eyes fluttered open, and she looked around franticly.

"George?" she choked out once she realized who was holding her.

"Yes, love. I'm here," he said, holding onto her.

She held onto George for dear life, and continued to cry. George wordlessly placed a silencing charm on the room, even though he knew it was too late for one.

"Shhh, Beth. Everything is fine. It was just a nightmare," he said as he rocked her back and forth.

"I'm so sorry," she said, trying to calm herself down. "I should've talked to you sooner."

"It's fine, love. You needed time to let everything sink in," George said softly.

"I don't know what I'd do without you. I love you so much, George," she started working herself up into again.

"I love you, too. Nothing's ever going to stop me from loving you," he said fiercely.

Beth held onto him tighter, knowing he was speaking the truth. Slowly but surely, Beth calmed down. George didn't let her go.

"How long have you been having these nightmares?" he asked, breaking the silence.

"Since I got home," she whispered quietly. "I guess I forgot to place the silencing charm up tonight," she mumbled.

George rubbed her back in response. His poor, lovely Beth.

Beth yawned and George smiled softly.

"Time for bed," he said pulling away to look at her.

"George? Stay with me tonight."

"Of course."

* * *

**A.N: Well, I hope you liked this chapter. Sorry it's taking me so long to crank these out. When I started revamping this story, I realized I pretty much had to start from scratch with these chapters. **

**Feedback is appreciated. :)**


	11. Chapter 11: Fred, Hermione, & Teddy

**Why yes, I am very much alive and so is this story! I know there have been some requests for more Fred and Hermione, so here you go! I hope you enjoy! As always, I own nothing.**

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_"Every parting is a form of death, as every reunion is a type of heaven."_

_- Tyron Edwards_

* * *

"_You look beautiful, Hermione. You really do," Fred said as he pulled Hermione close. It was Bill and Fleur's wedding and they had just walked out of the tent for some fresh air._

"_You look quite dashing yourself, Fred," Hermione said, her cheeks a rosy pink from her blushing. _

_They remained silent for awhile, taking comfort in each other's presence. Fred then stared into her eyes and knew what was coming. _

"_Fred, I'll be leaving soon," Hermione said quietly, looking away from him. _

_He sighed. "I know, love."_

"_You do?" she asked, looking back up at him with confusion in her eyes. _

_He nodded, "I've seen the way you've been plotting with Harry and Ron. I knew you guys were going to leave sooner or later."_

"_I'm sorry, Fred. There's no other way," she continued, her eyes glinting with tears. _

"_It's alright, love. I don't like the thought of you leaving, but it's necessary," he said, tightening his grip on her. He wasn't ready for her to leave just yet. _

"_I love you, Fred."_

"_I love you, too. Always and forever."_

Fred was sitting at the kitchen table deep in thought. He was tracing with his finger a ruby ring which was sitting on the table. He had planned on giving the ring to Hermione, but never found the right time to give it to her. He cursed himself over and over for not giving it to her at Bill and Fleur's wedding; the last time he saw her.

A flash of green light emitted from the fireplace.

"Bill. I don't mean to sound rude, by why in Merlin's name are you here?" Fred asked, as he ran a hand over his face.

It was universally accepted amongst all Order members that Fred Weasley was in poor shape. Beth ensured that he ate properly, and although she brewed some Sleeping Draughts, for herself and Fred, she knew he wasn't taking them.

Fred and Hermione were a bit more private about their relationship than everyone expected them to be. Since Hermione was so involved in the war, their relationship must have been put on hold. That didn't stop Fred from loving her and missing her like mad.

"It's Hermione, Fred. She's at Shell Cottage," Bill said slowly. Fred noticed how tired Bill looked.

"She's been hurt, hasn't she?" Fred asked gravely.

Bill nodded. Putting the ring into his pocket, Fred made his way towards the fireplace and to Shell Cottage.

x

"What happened to her?" Fred quickly asked Harry as soon as he saw him.

All that Fred cared about at this point was Hermione and the relief he felt when he saw Harry in the flesh was quickly outlived by his concern. Harry didn't answer right away, and that only caused Fred to become more panicked.

"What happened, Harry?" his voice was filled with emotion.

"She was tortured by Bellatrix," Harry stated plainly.

"Mione's resting upstairs," Ron added quietly.

Fred nodded his thanks and quickly made his way towards Hermione's room. He was prepared for the worst, but then again he wasn't. He hadn't seen her in months.

x

Hermione woke up to feeling of someone holding her hand. If she remembered correctly, the last hand she held was Harry's and that was while visiting his parents at Godric's Hollow. This hand didn't belong to Harry. She _knew_ this hand, and she didn't believe what she was feeling.

"Fred?"

She opened her eyes and saw Fred sitting next to her bed, keeping vigil. She smiled for the first time in a long time.

"I'm so glad you're finally awake!" Fred exclaimed, joy evident in his features.

She smiled wider and squeezed his hand. If she wasn't so weak, she would be nearly bouncing off the walls like Fred.

"How long have you been waiting?" she asked.

Fred shrugged, he really didn't know.

"An hour or two. I'm not really sure," he replied.

She nodded, "I'm glad you're here Fred."

"As am I, love. As am I."

The pair remained silent, both relishing each other's company. Fred could tell that Hermione wasn't ready to tell him what exactly happened, but he knew the gist of it. Fred had a gut feeling that Hermione knew he had a vague idea of what had happened.

Regardless if she knew or not, he wasn't going to push her.

"Hermione."

"Yes, Fred?"

"I have something for you," he said as he pulled out the ring from his pocket.

Hermione gasped.

"Before you say anything, my dear, hear me out," Fred said, knowing she had a lot to say.

She nodded, allowing him to continue.

"This isn't an engagement ring. It's a promise. A promise that I'll try my best to survive this damned war and that you better too or else I'll be very upset with you. A promise that one day after all of this is over, I'll ask you to be my wife," Fred said as tears slid down his face.

He wasn't ashamed of crying, not in front of Hermione. Especially when she was crying herself. Hermione held out a shaky hand to him and he slid the ring onto her finger. She smiled, realizing she now had a constant reminder to not give up on hope.

"I love you, Hermione."

"I love you, too. Always and forever," she said, remembering his words at Bill and Fleur's wedding.

He grinned before he leaned forward and kissed her. The knot of regret that had been in the pit of his stomach for months finally disappeared.

xxx

It was a quiet night alone for Beth and George. Molly wanted David at the Burrow for the week and not daring to say no to the Weasley matriarch, Beth allowed him to go. Fred was spending the past couple days at Shell Cottage on some confidential Order business. Although the pair were curious about what he could be doing, they didn't question it.

Beth was reading an extremely battered copy of Pride and Prejudice when George sat down next to her on the couch, and gently placed her book on the coffee table.

"I think it's about time we talk," he said.

"About what?"

"Well, when I said talk I really meant snog the daylights out of each other," he said grinning.

"George!"

"What? I haven't kissed you since Merlin know's when! And the way you bite your lip when you read has always driven me mad! Can I please kiss you?" George was playfully begging.

"It's not snogging that scares me, George. It's what happens when you go further than snogging that I'm afraid of," she said quietly. She hadn't kissed George since before the incident.

George sighed and cradled her hands in his.

"Beth, I love you. I would never push you into doing something you're not ready for. I'll go at whatever pace you want and if you're ever uncomfortable let me know. I'm in this for the long run, remember?" he said, poking the diamond ring on her finger.

Beth smiled, wondering how she deserved such an understanding man.

"Thank you, George," she said before slowly kissing him.

In her fear, Beth had forgotten how lovely it was to kiss George. In her fear, she forgot what it was like to be showered with affection from the one she loved. She knew she still wasn't ready to go much further, but she took comfort in the fact that she remembered what it felt like to be loved and not used.

x

"Beth! George! I have excellent news!" Lupin said as he rushed into the living room.

Beth and George quickly moved apart, not expecting someone to walk in on them snogging the daylights out of each other.

"Oh excuse me for not giving you prior warning, but this simply could not wait!" Remus said sounding not in the least embarrassed.

"What is it?" Beth asked.

"It's a boy! We've named him Teddy, after Dora's dad!" Remus exclaimed.

"Oh that's absolutely wonderful, Remus. Congratulations!" Beth said, standing up from the couch to give him a hug.

George shook his hand in congratulations.

"We want you to be the godmother, Beth," Remus said.

Beth smiled broadly, "I'm honored, Remus. Of course I will."

"Excellent! Dora will be thrilled. I need to tell the others now, I'll see you later!"

And with that, the new father quickly left.

"Teddy Lupin," George said. "Has a nice ring to it, don't you think?"

"And I'm his godmother," she said with wonder in her voice.

"You'll be lovely," George said.

"You think so?" Beth murmured.

"I know so."

Beth smiled and hugged her fiance.

* * *

**A.N: Reviews are always appreciated! :) **


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